Shaving head for electric dry shaver



APril 1968 F. J. SCHUESSLER 3,376,636

SHAVING HEAD FOR ELECTRIC DRY SHAVER Filed Nov. 28, 1966 5 Sheets-$heet1 6/4 K/////'/////J 19 17 Z 15 I\\\ k/nvenior l'cuwzls April 9, 1968 F.J. SCHUESSLER 3,376,636

SHAVING HEAD FOR ELECTRIC DRY SHAVER 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 28,1966 NW NW NW v April 1968 F. J. SCHUESSLER 76,636

SHAVING HEAD FOR ELECTRIC DRY SHAVER Filed Nov. 28, 1966 I 5Sheets-Sheet a 55 fie k /i weuioz rancs .fl lfaessr P 195.8 F. J.SCHUESSLER SHAVING HEAD FOR ELECTRIC DRY SHAVER Sheets-Sheet 4 FiledNov. 28, 1966 Jul/6w. araucis zfi' uessr April 9, 1968 F; J. SCHUESSLER76,536

SHAVING HEAD FOR ELECTRIC DRY SHAVER Filed Nov. 28, 1966 5 Sheets-SheetE Unite States Patent Oil-ice 3,376,636 Patented Apr. 9, 1968 ABSTRACTOF THE DISCLGSURE A shaving head for an electric dry shaver having asingle flexible shearing comb supported by a head frame with a centralbar and including a pair of reciprocating cutters supported in saidshaving head by means of a hingeable cutter support.

Background of the invention It is well known in the electric dry shavingart to provide a shaving head having a thin flexible perforated combwhich is supported in shearing engagement with a reciprocating cuttermade of a plurality of spaced parallel blades. The commercial shaversembodying this principle have utilized a single arch or semicylindricalcomb which is supported on a cutter of generally the same shape. Thecutter is conventionally connected to the drive arm of the shaver motorso that when the supporting means for the comb and the comb are removedfrom the shaver for cleaning purposes, the cutter remains assembled tothe motor drive arm.

Summary of the invention The invention relates to a dual shaving headhaving a pair of spaced cutters mounted for reciprocation in parallelrelationship in shearing engagement with a single continuous flexiblecomb. The comb is supported in an open frame having a center supportingbar around which the comb is folded so that in its assembled position onthe frame, it assumes a more or less inverted W-shaped configuration.The center support bar around which the comb is folded is snapped intoassembled relationship to the plastic head frame and includes a pair ofconical locating or positioning portions which secure the comb againstdisplacement lengthwise of the support rod and space the comb from theend walls of the head frame. The flexible comb is provided with acentrally extending bend so that it is preformed to a V-shape. This bendcooperates with the supported rod to assure that the comb will assumeits proper configuration and that it will not slide back and forthdepending on the amount of pressure applied to either one of theadjacent head portions.

To support the two cutter members which are made up of spaced parallelcutting blades secured together by parallel supporting rods, there isprovided a cutter support which is hinged to the plastic head frame sothat in its assembled position, it forms with the comb an enclosure forthe cutters and when pivoted to its opened position, permits access tothe cutters for cleaning purposes. The cutters are loosely secured tothe support plate by means of driving blocks which are designed totransmit the force from the motor drive arm into reciprocating movementof the cutters. A spring for biasing each cutter into engagement withthe comb is received between the drive block and the cutter and isengaged by the end of the motor drive arm to accomplish this biasingfunction.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide animproved drive shaver having a dual shaving head with a flexible com-bmember.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improvedshaving head wherein a single continuous perforated foil comb issupported for engagement by a pair of spaced reciprocating cutters.

It is still a further object of the present invention to provide animproved head having means for mounting a pair of shaving cutters withina head enclosure so that the support may be opened to permit cleaning ofthe cutters.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a shaving headhaving improved cutter biasing and cutter retaining means whereby thecutters may be made readily available for cleaning while still connectedin assembled relation to the shaving head.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent as the following description proceeds and the features ofnovelty which characterize the invention will be pointed out withparticularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of thisspecification.

Brief description of the drawings For a better understanding of thepresent invention, reference may be had to the accompanying drawings inwhich:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a shaver embodying my invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view taken substantially on line 22 ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken substantially on line 3--3' of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken on line 4-4 ofFIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken on line 55 ofFIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken substantially on line 6-6 of FIG. 5

FIG. 7 is a bottom plan view of the shaving head shown disassembled fromthe shaver of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view of the cutter and drive block takensubstantially along line 8-8 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary view of the mounting connection between the comband the head frame taken on line 99 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 10 is an end view of the comb shown in its formed condition priorto assembly to the shaving head;

FIG. 11 is a fragmentary sectional view on line 1111 of FIG. 5; and,

FIG. 12 is a plan view of the drive linkage between the motor and longhair clipper.

Description of the preferred embodiment There is shown in the drawings ashaver designated generally by reference numeral 11. The shaver 11 ismade up of a housing or body portion 12 which includes a pair ofcup-shaped housing members 13 and 14 which have walls abutting togetheron a common central plane as is evident in FIGS. 1 and 3. Received onthe top of the housing 12 is a shaving head 15 which includes a longhair clipper 16 mounted at one end thereof.

Mounted within the housing 12 is a vibrator type electric motor 17. Themotor 17 includes a U-shaped laminated field 18 having coils 19 receivedon each leg thereof. The U-shaped field 18 has a pair of spaced polefaces 20 adjacent to which is mounted a laminated armature 21. Theassembly screws 22 secure the field 18 to the housing member 13 as isbest shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. The upper two screws 22 also assemble theframe 23 in position on the top of the U-shaped field 18. The purpose ofthe frame 23 is to provide a pair of spring seats 24 against which thearmature biasing springs 25 are seated. The laminated portion of thearmature 21 is provided with salient poles 26 which are, in their restpositions, positioned closely adjacent to the field pole faces 20.

To precisely adjust the rest position of the salient poles 26, the frame23 is formed with elongated holes 27 through which the assembly screws22 extend. Thus, it is possible to position the frame 23 to obtain theproper relationship between the pole faces and the armature poles 26before tightening the screws 22. The upper end of the frame 23 isreceived on the armature supporting pin 28 which is received in abushing molded integrally with the housing member 13, as best shown inFIG. 3. Suitable bearing means are provided to journal the armature 21for oscillatory movement on the pin 28. Extending upwardly from thearmature 21 is the bifurcated drive lever 29.. The upper wall of thehousing 12 is provided with an opening 30 through which the drive lever29 extends.

Mounted between the adjacent housing members 13 and 14 is a terminalblock 34 which is provided with terminal pins 35 adapted to be connectedto a suitable plug connector on a power cord. Suitable lead wires 36 areprovided to interconnect the terminal pins 35 to the motor 17 through aswitch designated generally as 37. The details of the switch 37 aredisclosed and claimed in a copending application entitled ElectricShaver Having Combined Switch and Head Removal Actuator filedconcurrently with this application in the name of James H. Andrews. Theswitch 37 includes a switch actuator 38 which may be positioned in threealternative positions. In the position fur-thermost to the right asshown in dotted lines in FIG. 2, the circuit to the motor 17 is closed.In the position shown in solid lines in FIG. 2, the motor circuit isopened. There is a third position shown in FIG. 5 in which the actuatoris moved completely to the left in which position, extension 39 on theactuator engages a head latch 40 deflecting it out of retainingengagement with the shaving head 15 thereby permitting its removal fromthe housing 12.

In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a novelmeans for securing the housing members 13 and 14 in assembled relation.Since it is desirable from an asthetic standpoint to hide or obscure theassembly means, there are provided two types of assembly means for thehousing 12. At the top of the housing, there is an upwardly projectingwall 42 which extends into the shaving head 15 as is shown in FIGS. 3,4, and 5. Surrounding the projecting wall 42 is a ledge 43 against whichthe lower edge of the shaving head 15 is seated. Positioned above theledge 43 and extending through the upwardly projecting Wall 42 arespaced assembly screws 44. As is conventional practice in assemblingsuch housings, one of the housing members 14 is provided with clearanceholes so that the screws 44 may extend into threaded holes in theadjacent housing member 13. It should be appreciated that the recessedheads of the screws 44 are covered and obscured by the lower edge of theshaving head 15.

To secure together the lower portions of the adjacent housing members 13and 14, sets of integrally molded projections 45, as shown in FIG. 4,are provided. Each of the sets of assembly projections 45 is made up ofa threepronged member 46 on the housing half 14 and a twoprongedprojection 47 on the housing member 13. The three-pronged projection 46is formed with a central loeating pin 48 and two outer retaining nibs49. The twopronged projection47 is formed with a central cylindricalrecess and a pair of outwardly extending abntments 51. The purpose ofthe locating pin 48 is to guide the retaining projections intoengagement and to locate them against lateral displacement. Accordingly,the locating pin 48 extends well beyond the retaining nibs 49 and istapered at its outer end so that it engages and guides the partstogether as it is received in the recess 50. As the parts move together,the retaining nibs 49 move behind the abutments 51 thereby locking thehousing members 13 and 14 against separating movement. As is evidentfrom the view of the parts in FIG. 2, the abutments 51 are positioned atdiametrically opposite positions with respect to the pin 48. By havingthe retaining nibs 49 and the abutments 51 positioned so that they mayflex in a common plane, it is possible to obtain good interference andretaining forces while still. having the parts readily disassemblable.It

should be appreciated that the pin 48 and the recess 50 1 perform noretaining function as far as the separating forces are concerned. Thepin 48 and the recess 50 simply guide and prevent the retaining nibs 49and the abutments 51 from being displaced laterally out of retainingengagement. This provides a simple integrally molded assembly meanswhich retains the lower portion of the housing members 13 and 14assembled securely together in a manner in which the assembly means arecompletely hidden from view.

Positioned on the side ofrthe housing 12 is an actuating button 55 whichcontrols the operation of the long hair clipper 16. The details of thecontrol and the linkage between the motor 17 and the clipper 16 aredisclosed and claimed in a copending application entitled Dry ShaverWith Clutch for Long Hair Clipping Attachment, filed concurrently withthis application in the name of Rund-.

zaitis. The instant embodiment differs from the disclosure of theRundazitis application in that the clipper 16 is mounted on the head 15and is removable from the housing 12, while in the Rundzaitisapplication the clipper is mounted on an integral portion of thehousing. The button 55 is provided with a cam portion 56 which, when thebutton 55 is moved to the left as shown in FIGS. 1 and 12, deflects acamming spring 59 causing a clipper drive arm 57 to be displacedinwardly into driven engagement with a pin 58 extending sidewardly fromthe armature 21 as is best shown in FIGS. 3 and 12. The link 57 isreciprocated I lengthwise by virtue of the engagement of the pin 58 in arecess in link 57 thereby creating an oscillatory movement in the bellcrank 60.which is jour'nalled between the 6 housing members 13 and 14and oscillates about a vertical axis. The bell crank 60 includes asidewardly extending arm 60!: which is pivotally connected to the end oflink 57. Extending upwardly and outwardly from the top of the bell crank60 is a clipper drive member 61. The drive member 61 extends into adrive opening in a movable cutter 62 which is mounted in spring biasedshearing engagement with a comb blade 63. When thehead 15 isdisassembled from the housing 12, the drive member 61 is merelydisengaged fromits drive opening in the cutter 62 permitting theconnection to be broken as the head is removed.

The shaving head 15 includes a plastic head frame 65 which has sidewalls 66 and end walls 67.The side walls 66 and end walls 67 form arectangular frame having a central opening within which is mounted aperforated comb 68. The comb 68 is made of a thin flexible material,preferably stainless steel having a thickness of approximately .002inch. Prior to assembling the comb 68 to the head frame 65, it is formedwith a centrally extending bend 69, as shown in FIG. 10, so that itassumes a somewhat V-shape. The radius of curvature of the bend 69 is onthe order of of an inch. Adjacent the edges of the comb 68 extendingparallel to the bend 69 there are provided several mounting holes 70.Adjacent these holes, the material of the comb 68 is bent inwardly toform flanges 71 for the purpose to be explained below.

For the purpose of supporting the central portion of the comb 68, thereis provided .a comb support bar 72 which extends across the centerportion of the head frame 68 and has its ends mounted on the end walls67. The

support bar 72 is formed with a central portion 73 1 which has a largerradius of curvature than the .bend 69 in the comb 68. The centralportion 73 extends axially a suflicient length to accommodate the lengthof the 1 bent portion '69 of the comb 68. At the ends of the centralportion 73, the bar 62 is provided with conical portions 74 which serveto target or position the comb against the central portion 73 and at thesame time, space the comb 68 inwardly from the end walls 67 of the headframe 65.

The comb support bar is further provided with mounting portions 75 whichextend outwardly from the conical portions 74. In order to secure thesupport bar 72 to the head frame 65 by means of the mounting portion 75,the end walls 67 are formed with downwardly facing slots 76 which areenlarged at their upper terminal ends to receive with a slightinterference fit the mounting portions 75. The entrance of each slot 76is of reduced width so that the walls defining the slot 76 must bespread slightly to accommodate the mounting portion 75 as it is snappedupwardly into assembled position to the head frame 65. In this assembledpositon, the reduced width of the slot at the downwardly facing mouthretains the mounting portions of the bar 75 seated therein at the upperterminal end of the slots 76. As is evident from an inspection of FIG.5, the support bar 72 in its assembled position has the outer faces ofthe conical portions 74 seated against the adjacent end walls 67 so thatthe inner faces of the conical portions 74 locate the comb 68 in veryprecise spaced relation with respect to the end walls 67. The conicalportions serve to restrain the comb against movement lengthwise of thesupport bar 72 during the shaving operation.

The shaving head 15 is also provided with a pair of cutters 78. Each ofthe cutters 78 is made up of a plurality of semicircular cutting plates79, the shape of which is best shown in FIG. 8. The cutting plates aremounted in parallel, closely spaced relation by three parallel assemblyrods 80 which extend through suitable openings in the plates 79 withsufiicient material interference to retain the plates in spaced relationon the rods 80''. The curved outer surfaces of the cutting plates 78form a semicylindrical surface which when the two cutters 78 areassembled to head 15, support the comb 68 in the form of twosemicylindrical curved shearing areas, as is best shown in FIG. 6.

In order to spring bias the cutters 78 into shearing engagement with thecomb 68, there are provided elongated springs 81 which are bowed so thatthe outer ends 81a engage the cutting plates 79 while the centralportions 81b of the two springs are positioned to be engaged by the endof the motor drive arm or lever 29*. In this arrangement, as is bestshown in FIG. 2, the drive arm 29 deflects the springs 81 thereby urgingthe cutters 78 resiliently against the comb 68.

For the purpose of converting the oscillating motion of the drive arm 29into reciprocating motion of the cutters 78, a drive block 82 isprovided for each of the cutters. Each drive block 82 is formed of asuitable resilient plastic bearing material such as nylon and includesupwardly extending mounting projections 82a which are provided withoutwardly extending protuberances 8212 which engage the assembly rods 80as shown in FIG. 8 and retain the drive block 82 securely assembled tothe cutter 78. It should be appreciated that as the drive block 82 isassembled upwardly against the bottom of the cutter 78, the mountingprojections 82:: are deflected inwardly until the protuberances 82b snapover the tops of the assembly rods 80'. In the assembled position shownin FIG. 8, the drive block 82 has a body portion 82c which is seatedagainst the lower edges of the cutting plates 79 thereby assuring arigid assembly between the cutter 78 and the drive block 82. The driveblock 82 is formed with an upwardly extending drive arm opening 82d intowhich the drive arm 29 is received for establishing the drivingconnection between the motor 17 and the cutters 78. The opening 82d isflared outwardly at its lower end so that the drive arm may be properlyguided into driving relation with the drive block 82 when the head 15 isassembled to the shaver even though the cutter 78 may be initiallyslightly misaligned with respect to the drive arm 29.

As was mentioned above, when the head is assembled to the housing 12,the end of the drive arm 29 extends upwardly through the opening 82dinto engagement with the spring 81. The spring 81 extends between themounting projections 82a on the drive lever which is received in theclearance openings 83 formed in the lower edge of each of the cuttingplates 79'. It may be' seen that the springs 81 are thereby trappedbetween the drive block 82 and the plates 79 of the cutter 78. In orderto restrict the springs 81 against lengthwise displacement with respectto the cutter 78, the springs are formed with opposed notches 810 whichare received on small projecting walls 82c formed in the opening 82d inthe drive block 82 as is best shown in FIG. 7. This provides a simpleand effective means of biasing the cutters 78 against the comb 68 withno separate assembly operations necessary other than fitting the spring81 and the drive block 82 into engagement with the cutter 78.

One of the problems encountered in connection with electric dry shaversis that of cleaning and disposing of the beard clippings or hair chipsas they are sometimes called. These small particles of clipped hair tendto build up in the area of the co-acting shearing members and must bedisposed of before the build-up becomes so great as to interfere withthe operation of the moving parts. To provide access to the cutters 78within the shaving head 15, there is a cutter support 84 which ispivoted or hingeably connected to the head frame 65 by means of a pin 85which is snapped into assembled engagement with one of the end walls 67by having the ends of the pin 85 received in downwardly facing slots 86which slots are narrower at their mouths so as to retain the ends ofhinge pin 85 seated against the upper terminal ends of the slots 86 asis best shown in FIG. 5. The cutter support 84 is preferably a simplestamped sheet metal part having a formed end 84a which extends aroundand secures the support 84 to the hinge pin 85. At the end of thesupport 84 remote from the pin 85, there are a pair of upwardly formedears 8417 which snap into engagement with under-cut portions of the headframe 65 for the purpose of retaining the support 84 in its horizontalor closed position with respect to the head frame 65 In the assembledposition, the cutter support 84 forms along with the comb 68 and thehead frame 65 an enclosure 87 within which the two cutters 78 arereceived.

For the purpose of opening the enclosure 87 to provide access to thecutters 78, the cutter support 84 is formed with downwardly punched ears84c, best shown in FIGS. 2, 5, and 7. The ears 84c provide a handlewhich may be gripped by the fingers to pull the cutter support 84downwardly pivoting it about the pin 85 after the ears 84b have beensnapped out of engagement with the complementary portions of the headframe 65. The cutter support 84 may be pivoted downwardly to such anextent that it is substantially at right angles to the comb support bar72, thus providing easy access to the cutters 78 for cleaning purposes.

In order that the cutters 78 may remain connected to the shaving head 15during the cleaning operation, the drive blocks 82 serve to looselyconnect the cutters 78 to the cutter support 84. As is best shown inFIGS. 3, 5, and 6, the cutter support 84 is provided with two spacedopenings 84d through which the drive blocks 82 extend. The lower edge ofthe drive blocks 82 are provided with enlargements 82 which make thedrive block of suificient width so that it may not pass upwardly throughthe openings 84d. Thus, once the drive blocks 82 are assembled throughthe openings 84d into engagement with the cutters 78, the cutters areloosely assembled to the cutter support 84. As may be seen in FIGS. 2and 7, the openings 84d in the c utter support 84 are of sufiicientlength to allow the cutters 78 to reciprocate without the drive blocks82 engaging the ends of the openings 84a. Accordingly, there is provideda simple means for retaining the cutters 78 as an integral part of theshaving head 15 even while the cutter support 84 is swung to the openposition for the purpose of exposing the cutters 78 for cleaningpurposes.

For the purpose of reducing the noise produced by motor 17, the insideof the housing 12 adjacent the field is lined with a suitablenon-hardening putty like material 90 as is shown in FIG. 3. Thismaterial not only insulates the motor somewhat from the case but alsoda-mpens out vibrations which might otherwise occur at the plastic wallsof the housing 12.

Turning now to the structure of the comb 68 and the manner in which itis mounted on the head frame 65, it has been indicated above that thecomb 68 formed with a centrally extending bend 69 so that it assumes asubstantially V-shape as shown in FIG. with the angle defined by thecomb being on the order of 90 degrees and the radius of the bend beingapproximately of an inch. The comb 68 is assembled to the head frame 65by merely bending the outer edges downwardly from the position shown inFIG. 10 and inserting the comb upwardly into the head frame 65 so thatthe bend 69 rests against the comb support bar 72. The side walls of thehead frame 65 are formed with integrally molded inwardly extendingprojections 88 which are received in the comb openings 70 as is bestshown in FIG. 9. As is evident from FIG. 9, the opening 70 is oversizein the direction toward the perforated shaving area therebyaccommodating a certain amount of movement in the comb as it is appliedto the face of the user.

It should be noted that the comb 68 may be simply and easily assembledto the head frame by merely inserting the preformed comb upwardly intothe head frame where it is supported centrally on the bar 72 and alongits parallel marginal edges on the side walls 66 by means of themounting projections 88 which extend into the mounting openings 70. Inthe assembled position, the comb assumes an inverted W-shaped contourwith the rounded arches as is evident from FIGS. 3 and 6. The naturalcurvature of the comb 68 is substantially the same as the curvatureassumed when the cutters 78 are swung into position on the support 84and biased into engagement with the comb by means of the spring 81. Theprebending of the comb is desirable to assure the contour of the combwith its two arched surfaces.

It is important, however, that the radius of the bar 72 be greater thanthe radius of the bend 69 to assure accurate formation of the combcontour. It should be ob vious that, from a manufacturing standpoint, itis easier to control the diameter of a bar such as the support bar 72rather than to control the radius of the bend 69. The shape and locationof the arches of the comb 68 will then be determined by the comb supportbar 72. If the radius of the bend 69 is greater than the radius of thesupport bar 72, it should be evident that a less controlled conditionwill exist since the radius of the bend will then control the shape ofthe arches.

Another important reason for preforming the comb 68 is the necessity forpreserving the symmetry between the two arch-shaped shearing areas. Ithas been discovered that a continuous foil comb supported in the mannerdescribed above will be displaced under the support bar 72 during normalconditions of use so that one of the arches will become larger than theother if the comb 68 is not preformed with the transverse bend 69. Thisdisplacement of the comb and change in shape of the arches createsproblems in obtaining good shearing engagement between the cutters 78and the comb 68. The bend 69 provides a novel and inexpensive expedientfor maintaining the desired symmetrical shape of the comb 68. Inaddition, the bend 69 facilitates the shaping of the comb to theinverted W-shaped configuration for insertion into the head frame 65.

While there has been shown and described a single embodiment of theinvention, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that changesand modifications may be made without departing from the invention, andthat it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such changes andmodifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent ofthe United States is:

1. In an electric shaver of the type having a fixed perforated comb anda movable cutter included in a shaver head assembly, a housing enclosingan electric motor and supporting said assembly with said motor drivingsaid cutter in shearing engagement with said comb, the improvementcomprising a cutter, support, a head frame providing an open box-likestructure with said comb extending across a top opening therein, meanspivotally connecting said cutter support to an inside Wall of saidframe, means loosely attaching said cutter to said support whereby saidcutter may be reciprocated with respect to said head assembly, and meanslatching said support in a closed position with said cutter enclosedbetween said support and said comb.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said support has an opening formedtherein, drive means forsaid cutter comprising a block having a centralopening for receiving the end of a motor driven drive arm, said cuttercomprising a plurality of cutter plates assembled on parallel supportrods, resilient means on said block snapping into assembled engagementwith said rods with said block extending through said opening in saidsupport, the lower portion of said block being larger than said openingin said support whereby said block retains said cutter with 1 respect tosaid support.

3. The combination of claim 1 wherein said support comprises anintegrally formed stamped plate member, said latching means includingformed projections on said member which are deflected as said member ismoved to the closed position, latching abutments on said head framewhich receive sa-id projections to latch said support in the closedposition.

4. A shaving head for a motor driven electric dry shaver comprising aplastic head frame having connected side walls and end walls forming arectangular member with a large central opening, a foraminous comb ofthin flexible material extending across said opening and secured to saidside walls, a cutter. including a plurality of spaced parallel cuttingplates supported on a series of rods extending parallel to said sidewalls, a cutter support detachably secured to said head frame to form anenclosure with said comb and said head frame within which enclosure saidcutter is received, said cutter being loosely connected to said cuttersupport whereby said cutter may be reciprocated in a direction parallel,to said side walls, cutter biasing means secured to said cutter forurging said-cutter, in shearing engagement with said comb, said flexiblecomb being unsupported intermediate said side walls so that said combconforms to the shape of said cutter.

5. The shaving head of claim 4 wherein said cutter biasing meanscomprises an elongated spring extending parallel to said cutter andhaving the ends thereof engaging said cutter at its opposite ends, adrive block rigidly secured to said cutter and overlying the centralbowed portion of said spring, said block being adapted to receive theend of an oscillating motor drive lever to cause said cutter toreciprocate along a line parallel to said side walls, said spring beingpositioned to be engaged and deflected by said drive leverv to providethe biasing force forv said cutter, and means on said driving block toretain said 1 spring assembled to said cutter.

6. The shaving head of claim 4 wherein there are two of said cutterscarried by said cutter support within said enclosure, said cuttingplates being semicircular and assembled on said rods to form asemicylindrical cutting surface on each cutter for shearing engagementwith said comb, said cutters being mounted for reciprocating in spacedparallel relation, a comb support bar secured to said head frame andextending across said central opening between said cutters, said combassuming an inverted W-shape in said head frame with the central portionextending below said support bar and said outer edges being secured tosaid side walls, the portions of said comb intermediate said support barand said outer edges assuming the semicylindrical shape of said cuttingsurface.

7. The shaving head of claim 4 including two of said cutters carried bysaid cutter support and received'within said enclosure, said cuttersbeing supported for reciprocating movement in spaced parallel relationin said opening, a comb support bar mounted on the end walls of saidmember and extending across said opening between said cutters, said combbeing flexed beneath said bar to form two separate shearing areas eachengaged by one of said cutters and spaced by said bar.

8. The shaving head of claim 7 wherein said support bar is cylindricalin shape in the central section engaging said comb, conical locatingsections adjacent said central section of said bar to space said combfrom the end walls of said head frame and secure said comb againstlengthwise displacement as a consequence of the reciprocation of saidcutters.

9. The shaving head of claim 7 wherein said comb is formed of flexiblesteel on the order of .002 inch in thickness, said comb being preformedwith a central bend to form a V-shape prior to assembly to said headframe, said bend having a smaller radius of curvature than said bar.

10. A dual shaving head for an electric dry shaver comprising a headframe having side walls and end walls forming a rectangular frame memberprovided with a large central opening, a comb support bar having itsends mounted in said end walls and extending across the middle of saidopening, a thin flexible perforated comb which is preformed with acentral bend prior to its assembly to said head whereby said comb isV-shaped in its disassembled condition, means securing said comb to saidside Walls by the two outer edges which extend parallel to said bend,said comb being assembled to said head frame with said bend positionedbelow said support bar, said bend causing said comb to assume aninverted W-shaped configuration with the portions on either side of thesupport bar being substantially semi-cylindrical in shape.

11. The dual shaving head of claim 10 wherein said support bar is formedwith a central portion for engagement with and for support of said comb,conical portions adjacent each end of said central portion to locatesaid comb and space it from said end walls, and mounting portions ofreduced diameter at the ends of said bar received in recesses in saidend walls for mounting said bar with respect to said frame.

12. The dual shaving head of claim 10 wherein said means securing saidcomb to said side walls includes projections on said side walls formedintegrally with said head frame, openings in said comb through whichsaid projections extend, said comb opening being bordered by turned upflange portions to prevent said comb from shearing off said projections.

13. The shaving head of claim 10 wherein said central bend in said combhas a smaller radius of curvature than the radius of curvature of saidsupport bar.

14. The shaving head of claim 10 wherein said means securing said combto said side walls provides a loose connection for the edges of saidcomb permitting a portion of said comb on one side of said bar to bedeflected downwardly while the portion on the other side of said barremains undeflected.

15. The shaving head of claim 10 wherein, each of said semi-cylindricalportions of said comb providing a separate independent shaving area onsaid head, a pair of movable cutters, spring means biasing one of saidcutters into engagement with the inner surface of each of saidsemi-cylindrical portions, and said means securing said comb to saidside walls providing a loose connection permitting each said portion ofsaid comb to be deflected downwardly separately of each other underpressure against the face of the user.

16. In an electric dry shaver of the type having a pair of housingmembers abutting along a common plane to form an enclosure for a motor,a detachable shaving head, an improved assembly arrangement comprisingportions of said housing members extending upwardly into said shavinghead, screw threaded assembly means extending into both of said housingmembers to retain the members in assembled relation, said assembly meansbeing hidden by said head but being accessible for disassembly when saidhead is removed, second assembly means on wall portions of said housingmembers at a point remote from said shaving head, said second assemblymeans including three pronged projections on one member engaging twopronged projections on the other member, a center locating projection insaid three pronged projections extending into a corresponding recesspositioned between said two projections of said two pronged projections,said two pronged projections engaging the two outer prongs of said threepronged projection in locking interference to retain said housingmembers together in abutting relation.

17. In an electric dry shaver, inner assembly means for retaining a pairof plastic housing members together comprising integrally moldedprojections extending from opposed wall portions of said housingmembers, one of said housing members having said projections arranged insets of three aligned projections with the center projection beinglonger than the outer two and serving only to guide and align theprojections, said outer two projections being positioned to receive andgrip a pair of projections extending from the other of said housingmembers, and a guiding recess positioned between the projections of saidpair to receive and guide said center projection, said outer twoprojections being flexible in order to snap into locking engagement withsaid pair of projections.

18. The combination of claim 17 wherein said center projection is acylindrical member formed with a tapered outer end to guide it intoengagement with said guiding recess which is also cylindrical to snuglyreceive said center projection, said center projection serving toprevent lateral displacement of said pair of projections out ofalignment with said three aligned projections.

19. In an electric dry shaver of the type having a housing enclosing anelectric motor, first driving means extending outside of said housingfor engagement with a movable cutter in a detachable shaving head, theimprovement comprising a detachable head frame providing an openbox-like structure having a rectangular opening within which aperforated comb is mounted, said head frame being removably mounted onsaid housing in a position overlying said first driving means, a cuttermounted in shearing engagement with said comb and reciprocated by saiddriving means in a direction coinciding with the long dimension of saidrectangular opening, a long hair trimmer supported on said head frame ona wall extending transverse to the direction of reciprocation of saidcutter and having cutting teeth which extend outwardly of said headframe in a direction corresponding to the direction of reciprocation ofsaid cutter, second driving means separate and spaced from said firstdriving means extending outside of said housing within said head frameand into driving engagement with said long hair trimmer.

20. The combination of claim 19 wherein said first drive means comprisesa lever pivoted about a horizontal axis extending transversely to thedirection of cutter reciprocation, said second drive means including abell crank driven for oscillating movement about a vertical axis lyingin a plane perpendicular to said horizontal axis, a trimming drive leverextending upwardly and radially from said bell crank into engagementwith said long hair trimmer.

21. The combination of claim 20 wherein said first drive means lever andsaid trimming drive lever are positioned at horizontally spacedpositions on a top wall of said housing, said head frame completelyenclosing said levers which automatically engage in driving relationsaid butter and said long hair trimmer when said shaving head isassembled to said housing.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Rand et al 30-34651 X Luisser eta1. 3034.1 Bylund 30-4392 Kleinman 30-41.6 Kleinman 30-4391 Ream 30-43.1Bruecker 30-4392 X 8/1963 Kleinman 30-4392 2/1965 King 30-4392 4/1965Liska 30-34651 8/1966 Messinger et a1. 30-3491 12/1966 Schuessler 30-34112/1966 Kratz 30-3492 X FOREIGN PATENTS 8/1955 Germany.

2/ 1957 Germany.

3/ 1963 Germany;

MYRON C. KRUSE, Prima1y Examiner.

